


fight/flight

by Darkfromday



Series: Arc-V Rare Pair Week 2017 [6]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Arc V Rare Pair Week, F/M, M/M, lateposting 2017, prompt fills
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-09-04
Packaged: 2018-12-23 14:22:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11991630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkfromday/pseuds/Darkfromday
Summary: Prompt fills for Arc-V Rare Pair Week, Day 6: Wartime.





	1. unspoken (serena/yuuto)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Assumptions: the setting is mostly canon. United dimensions, but separate bodies.

Some first dates were simple, so long as there was no mention of politics, religion, or sex on the first night.

Frankly, Yuuto  _wished_  he had those kinds of problems. In order to keep his feelings and his head intact, he had to avoid any mention of:

  * Academia
  * Ruri’s kidnapping
  * The battlefield that was Heartland and the Xyz Dimension
  * The Rebellion
  * How evil the Professor and his blindly loyal minions were



Oh yeah, and he had to create ongoing conversation.

And survive.

Until after dessert.

_Unless she doesn’t want dessert. What if she’s offended by me even offering to buy her dessert? Oh, god…_

“You’ll be fine,” Yuuya soothed, helping him tie his tie before checking his dark ensemble over in the hallway mirror. “Serena’s a little abrasive when you first meet her, but she’s got a good heart under all that, uh, prickly.  _You_  know that, she’s agreed to go out with you!”

Yuuto tried not to turn green–-it would clash with his suit. "But what if she  _hates_  me? Or looks down on me? Or treats me like I’m–-you know,  _him_ –-"

"You’re not Yuuri. She barely even knew him, and it’s probably not him she’s thinking about right now.”

That was likely. Still…

“…There’s so much we can’t talk about without hurting each other… or making things awkward.”

Yuuya  _pshaw_ ed. “I’m a performer–-I just push through awkward, Yuuto. So can you. If I can get into a relationship with Grace without us hurting one another or always bringing up the past, you and Serena will definitely be fine.”

After this empty excuse for a pep talk he was pushed out of  _his own house_ , and made to march down the street toward his delight or his doom. Yuuto’s adrenaline was racing, his blood skating, his mind constantly churning out frantic instructions like  _don’t think of the war don’t talk about the war don’t think of the war don’t talk about the war–-_

“Hey.”

He jumped out of his skin. Somehow he’d made it to the Italian restaurant, and  _Serena_  was staring at him and lifting one deep blue eyebrow. His distraction had been so great that he’d almost bumped into the person he was trying to da–-

“Earth to Yuuto,” Serena said. “Are you using that stupid look to get out of dinner?”

“What? I–-n-no, no way!”

“Then what’s wrong?”

Yuuto kept stammering. “Nothing’s wrong… I just had a lot on my mind, didn’t see you…”

She paused a moment to smirk, then gestured to him. “Whatever you say, rebel boy. Come on, we’ve gotta get a table.”

* * *

Yuuto didn’t realize the rules he’d made for himself were broken by Serena and they were  _still_  comfortable together until it was happening.

Over lasagna and linguini, they’d chatted about how life in their new schools was going, about transitioning to being in one dimension, and of course about dueling: entering the Pro League, switching strategies, buying new cards. It didn’t take long before Yuuto remembered his manners and complimented his date’s floor-length dress after she warmly and positively noted his choice of a matching red tie.

He felt warm and content the longer their small talk meandered on. Then Serena broke into their taboo topics.

“How’s your friend coping?”

Once again Yuuto found himself sputtering. “I–-m-my–-you mean Ruri?!”

“Yeah…” She twirled her fork, not looking at him for a moment. “I’ve been sort of–-avoiding her, and Rin and Yuzu. Not because I don’t  _like_ them or anything–-just–-I feel guilty. For being part of a place that caused them so much pain.”

He was torn between squirming discomfort at the reminders and an indescribable urge to protect her from her own self-deprecation. Eventually he muttered, “Don’t… don’t be guilty. You aren’t the Professor, you didn’t plan for any of what happened.”

Serena’s green eyes were still sad. “I idolized the Professor though… I  _wanted_  to impress him by hurting others. And the only way I would have was if I had hurt Ruri. And you.”

They were both quiet. The restaurant suddenly seemed too cold for them, or for anyone.

 _This is why I didn’t want to bring these things up_ , Yuuto lamented, but now that it was out there he couldn’t let her wallow in memories she undoubtedly wanted to leave behind.

“Ruri’s doing okay,” he eventually said. “Still kind of skittish about trusting new people, but she smiles more now, and we can go to different schools without freaking out.”

His dinner partner perked up. “That’s great… really great.” When she smiled, even hesitantly, it made the atmosphere that much warmer.

“Yeah. After–-after everything, it’s nice to see people smiling.”

The waiter came around requesting their dessert orders; recalling his earlier concerns, Yuuto started to sweat, but Serena just waved the guy away and turned her focus back to him.

“What about  _your_  smile, Yuuto?”

He stared blankly at her.

“Listen,” she elaborated. “I think we have a lot in common. We’re both serious, more mature, talented, quiet. But that doesn’t mean I don’t ever want to see you looking like you’re happy. Especially when we’re out on a  _date!”_

Yuuto laughed abruptly–-he couldn’t help it, her raised voice at the end and her indignant look caught him off guard.

“I mean it! Are you even enjoying yourself?!”

“Of course I am!” he burst out. “I like this, it feels comfortable. It just may not seem that way because–-because I–-was trying not to hurt you by mentioning Academia, or Heartland.”

The words were out now–-but while Serena took to looking contemplative, that never became irritation or anger. In fact–-her face softened, like she was on the same wavelength.

“I get it. You didn’t want to make things awkward…”

But the way she trailed off made his stomach sink even as he nodded.

_She’s going to throw her drink in my face and march off…_

“…Yuuto? It’s good for us to talk about our new lives, but it would be better if we agree to talk about the past too.  _Our_  pasts. If you’re comfortable with it, it won’t be awkward, and it’ll make our future dates as nice as this one.”

A moment after she finished speaking Yuuto’s sinking stomach was propelled right back up into the clouds. Serena’s hesitant grin and her words were spinning around in his head.

_We can talk about the past._

_Future dates._

He felt warm and validated–-and the more she talked about tomorrows, the more he liked her and wanted to spend some--all--of those tomorrows with her.

“So what do you say?” she was asking now. “I’m willing to open up some more if you are.”

No time was wasted pausing to think on this. Yuuto knew his date liked swift, decisive people, so he found it best to immediately take her hand instead.

“I am.”


	2. (not) post-trauma (tatsuya/reira)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don’t have PTSD or panic attacks. Any feedback on how this is portrayed/handled below will be well appreciated.

Akaba Reira had an unfortunate habit of occasionally skipping school. Fortunately, when that happened, Yamashiro Tatsuya knew exactly what needed to be done.

He’d excuse himself to the restroom with “indigestion” first, so no one thought to wonder at his long absence for at least a few periods. Once free, he grabbed the stash of things he kept in his locker for truant days: chip bags, blankets, some cards and a portable CD player. These things would then bounce around his backpack as he snuck out the school’s side door, jogged across the park and found the coolest, quietest part of the city.

When Tatsuya made it to the undusted part of the library, Reira was there with his hands over his ears, breathing fast.

Mournfully he thought,  _I’m right every time._

“Reira?”

The other boy cringed, still trembling and hyperventilating.

Exhaling slowly, Tatsuya sat down next to him. Getting out of school and finding his best friend was the easy part. Sometimes, knowing what to do  _next_  was what eluded him. Things that soothed Reira on a Monday might not work at all on a Thursday. The only guaranteed form of comfort was Reira’s brother Reiji, which was why he was number three on Tatsuya’s speed dial.

He always alerted the young president when his brother was having a traumatic episode, and today was no different; he’d done so on the way here. But until Reiji could cross town for them, Tatsuya was on his own.

 _One step at a time,_  he thought now, drawing on Ayu’s strength and intuitiveness.

“Reira–-it’s Tatsuya. I don’t know what you’re remembering right now, but you aren’t there. You’re here–-in Maiami–-with me.”

The hands over the other boy’s ears didn’t clamp down quiet as tightly–-but he was still breathing fast, fast, too fast. A bad sign.

Tatsuya had to keep trying to ground him.

“You’re  _home_. You’re in the city’s public library and you missed lunch. I did too, actually… are you as hungry as I am right now? If you wanted I could get you some udon or…”

Reira moaned something unfamiliar. A name. It sounded like  _Rei_.

“Reiji’s coming soon,” Tatsuya said soothingly. “Your brother, you remember him? He always makes sure you don’t get hurt. Breathe–-breathe in and out–-breathe slower for me–-”

It took time, but gradually Reira’s breathing slowed down and he stopped looking ready to faint. Tatsuya had to roll wildly between topics, like going from food to school, and school to movies, and movies to silly duels he’d had at You Show. The positive change in status for his friend came as a huge relief–-but he still knew that nothing was near all right.

Now he ventured out of his head, to attempt conversation. “Reira…? Do–-do you feel up to telling me what’s wrong?”

The other boy shuddered–-a full-body one. But he spoke–- _he spoke!_ –-too: “No.”

“Okay…. Do you want me to go?”

Reira flinched again, then reached out as Tatsuya got up to give him space, aborting his own grab before their hands could connect. But the  _no!_  he repeated whisper-soft in the quiet space got his point across–-he didn’t want to be alone.

So instead they sat together, neither touching the other, but close enough together that Tatsuya couldn’t sense Reira’s head retreating into that dark war space it had, where whatever he had lived and seen did a trauma conga in his head that Tatsuya and his tangible presence were sometimes powerless to stop.

At some point, Tatsuya’s phone wiggled with a text from Reiji:  _Our ETA is ten minutes. I trust that Reira will be fine with you until then._

He texted back,  _You can count on me_ , then relayed the update to his friend.

“Okay,” Reira said softly, nodding, saying nothing else for a bit. Then: “Thank you, Tatsuya.”

“It’s not–-there’s no need to thank me, you’re my friend.”

“There is. You always–-you always know what helps me. You spend time with me when no one else will. You’re always listening, even when you talk. There’s no pressure when I’m with you, and…”

He broke off, but this time not from any trouble breathing or finding his place in time. Instead he shrugged as if to say  _that’s it, that’s all I meant to say._

Tatsuya just nodded, and reached out to finally close the distance and hold Reira’s once-outstretched hand.

He figured he could guess what exactly might be plaguing Reira’s thoughts: bad dreams, his fear of abandonment, maybe whatever he had experienced while fighting so far away from home. But he never asked outright, and he never expected Reira to tell him.

Maybe one day he would, or he wouldn’t-–regardless, Tatsuya knew he’d spend his life doing what helped if that was what Reira needed.

* * *

 

Reiji arrived incognito exactly ten minutes after his text, but Reira had dozed off by the time he found them in the back of the library.

“Reiji-san,” Tatsuya said as he leaped up, startled anyway.

“Yes, it is I.” He looked amused; his eyes gleamed as he glanced between the boys. “Reira looks well…”

“He had a bad day,” Tatsuya admitted. “Panic attack, probably, before I got here. But I think as long as he has company–-”

“He will. I’ll remain with him for the next few days, away from school until he adjusts to being back.”

“Good… that’s good.”

Reira sighed; his grip on Tatsuya’s hand tightened, but the latter didn’t flinch. It was an awkward climb to his feet with an extra sleeping arm attached, but he managed it somehow.

Reiji took the liberty of unwinding the boys’ hands and picking his younger brother up, holding him like a much smaller child. When he looked back at Tatsuya, he offered him a rare smile.

“Thank you for your support.”

“Of course!” Tatsuya stammered, floored but also bemused. “I mean, anytime, it’s not a problem. Reira’s my very important friend and I really just want to help him in every possible way.”

He blushed a little at how vehemently he’d said that, but it felt no less true, and it didn’t matter if anyone approved of it or not.

Reira smiled in his sleep. Seeing it, Reiji retrieved his younger brother’s school bag too, and nodded to Tatsuya, giving him a few parting words as he turned and left.

“Safe travels. I’ll have Reira contact you tonight.”

As they disappeared through the front doors, Tatsuya got his own things together, and later headed back to school with a huge grin on his face.

 _Looking forward to it_ , he thought.


	3. spies and their lies (ruri/dennis)

Ruri called out for her ace monster to finish the Academian straggler off, and it did without any hesitation.

“ _Aaagh!”_ the other girl shrieked,  both stunned and horrified as her life points hit zero. She was thrown back yelling some version of  _oh no how could this be, defeated by Xyz scum, impossible_ –-the usual drivel.

“Get out of my city and don’t come back,” Ruri told her, then turned her back and moved on as the Solid Vision dissipated.

She didn’t wait to see her opponent press her wrist transporter and flee, but she knew it would happen–-it came to pass every time she beat one of these mad leftovers from the war, because she made sure to beat them so badly that shame sent them running back to their broken home.

It was the least bit of revenge she could deal out.

A brief but blinding flash of light appeared and disappeared behind her, and she walked on, her lips not even twitching upward. This wasn’t the first ‘rebel’ she’d had to kick out of Heartland since her return, or even in the last day. It was quickly getting old-–yet she persisted.  _Had_  to, or these fanatics might be able to band together and terrorize Heartland’s people and the  _real_  rebels once more, without remorse.

Storm clouds brewed above Ruri’s head, having come from out of nowhere to blanket her city. Exhaling quietly, she resolved to head back toward her sector for a bit–-even Academia’s soldiers didn’t like to operate in the rain, so she wouldn’t find any lingering outside.

 _Better to rest now, and take care of more later. Maybe Yuuto will feel up to joining me by then_.

* * *

 

The rain was a choking downpour the closer Ruri got to her side of town–-but there was nowhere open or closed to stop in, and thanks to the rain she had bad reception on her communicator, so she couldn’t check in with Sayaka or anyone else. So press on she did, staring uneasily up every so often and keeping her eyes peeled for friend or foe.

But after months of thinking in very black-and-white terms, of considering and then making the world her battleground, Ruri forgot that not everyone she would meet would fall neatly into wartime categories.

Several things happened in quick succession:

A bolt of lightning hit the rusted fire escape of an abandoned building, dislodging the bottom set of stairs and sending them tumbling toward her head–-

Ruri froze, wide-eyed, unsure in the span of milliseconds how to deal with the hand she’d abruptly been dealt–-

A voice from the darkness screamed “ _Look out, Ruri!!”–-_

A dark shadow leapt at her, closing the distance in what seemed like less than no time, and knocked her to the ground, not letting her up when she struggled weakly–-

-–and normal time resumed.

Ruri’s head throbbed–-it had bumped the street a little hard in the save. But her brain throbbed too, trying desperately to figure out  _who_  had saved her.

She put it together all too quickly when she saw Trapeze Magician hoisting the broken, searing stairwell above and away from her head.

 _Much, much too quickly_. 

“ _You!”_

When she scrambled to her feet, sure enough, Dennis Mackfield was scrambling right with her, checking her for injuries and generally looking worried, wide-eyed and innocent.

Everything he wasn’t.

“I can’t believe–-” she spat, feeling saliva or venom or  _something_  pile up in her veins, in her words. “How  _dare_  you sure your face to me-–”

“ _Ruri_ , are you all right?! A steel beam almost dropped on your head!”

He moved toward her with his hands out, reaching to check the bump that was probably enhancing Ruri’s appearance  _so much_ , and she yelled “ _Do not touch me!_ ”

 _That_  backed him off.

Thunder boomed nearby, rain flattened them down to their basest selves, and Ruri took the chance to calm down by ripping up some more of her old jacket to wrap crudely around her forehead.

She had suspected sometimes that she was being followed as she purged her city of child soldiers, but never had any evidence to support her paranoia. If anyone  _was_  following her though she’d suspected her bumbling brother,  _not_  Dennis.

 _Never him_.

Eventually she felt like she could talk without screaming, croaking or choking. “Why are you here? Are you making another surveillance pass for your home team?”

“ _What?_ ” Dennis blanched, barely discernible in the dark. “Ruri,  _no_ , I’m not here for  _them_ , I’ve been looking for  _you!”_

 _Yeah, sure_.

Ruri held up her right arm, readying the duel disk there. “Oh, I’ll bet. Which is it this time-–are you going to bring me back to Akaba Leo yourself, or are you finally here to duel me head-on?”

He looked at her unsteadily, and inwardly she thrilled at having thrown him off this much. She had earned the advantage this time.

“Ruri, why are you being so hostile? I mean–-I’d blame it on the concussion you probably have but I don’t think you’re in the mood for jokes…”

She took deep breaths, but still jabbed defensively at him with her words, not letting up for a second. “You’re really standing here in  _my_ homeworld, pretending like you don’t know why I want you gone?  _And_ you have the nerve to make  _jokes_?”

“ _What else am I supposed to do?”_ Dennis hissed, flailing his arms–-despite herself Ruri flinched and backed away some more, cooled down. She’d never seen him…  _mad_  before.

He was kind of scary.

“There’s nothing else I can do. I’ve tried to do relief runs–-but too many refugees saw me hurt them and they don’t–-won’t–-believe I want to help them now. I’ve tried rounding up some of the strays from Fusion who don’t know the war’s over, but  _you’ve_  been beating me to a ton of those–-”

“Because this place isn’t the set for your  _redemption film_ ,” Ruri spat. “And the war isn’t over here. So long as these scum keep ambushing innocents and trying to retake  _my_  home, we’ll never have peace!”

Dennis yanked at his hair. “And that’s supposed to be  _all on me?”_

“YES!”

Her scream was punctuated by another  _boom-crackle_  of thunder, and Dennis’ eyes were as blue and wide as she’d ever seen them.

Ruri trembled in the chill of the rain, which masked some of the sting in her eyes and made her throat feel even more hot and raw. But her duel disk arm scarcely wavered, and the words didn’t stop pouring out. The hurt didn’t either.

“ _Yes_ , Dennis. It  _is_  all on you, because it’s your fault Academia got set up here in the first place. It’s on your word that the Obelisk Force knew who and where to hit, and it’s thanks to your lies and subterfuge that your Professor even knew where to find me.”

She finally lowered her aching arm; her bluff was done. She could hurt nameless, faceless Academia mooks, but she couldn’t hurt the person who’d hurt her first.

His voice came slowly, hesitantly through the storm. “I know what I did. Every day I’m reminded–-I remind  _myself_ –-that I was a monster, a deceiver. No matter what steps I take to make things better, the looks don’t change. The  _fear_  doesn’t change. Ruri… kids are  _scared_  of me.”

Ruri’s glance at him showed her that his eyes were overbright too, but her sympathy just wasn’t back in her yet. Not for him. “You keep wanting me to feel sorry for you. How can I when all I see when I look at you now is my home burning? My family suffering? My friends fighting for their lives?”

“But you  _can_ , because… once when you looked at me, you saw none of that. You saw more than that. Your eyes used to hold something much better than sympathy for me.”

_…Yes. They did, didn’t they?_

Dennis looked so…  _earnest_. Earnest and lost at the same time, like he was trying to find a path he knew was already blocked off.

Except he was right. She had been in love with him, when he was in her untainted home not so long before now. She attended all his shows, and they’d grown closer with friendly duels and long chats once she started feeling brave enough to linger to speak with him. Ruri had memorized the color of his eyelashes, the amount of ties he rotated, and how many characters he played onstage, among other things.

The number of kisses they’d had: 3.

The number of dates they’d been on before everything imploded: 5.

And the number of times they’d exchanged those three words: once.

Ruri had been  _stupid_ in love with him. But she didn’t have the slightest clue if his old confession had been an inconvenient truth or yet another smooth lie. And living with heartache and uncertainty wasn’t her thing.

“Once they did,” she finally confirmed, moving so she lingered under the threatening metal stair and the equally-threatening, horrid, two-faced monster of his. His gaze followed her there, and grew sadder the longer it lingered on her closed body language. “You’re right, Dennis–-I cared a lot about you. I loved you, and everything about me used to reflect that.”

“…but you keep using past tense,” he said forlornly.

Ruri took a deep, steadying breath.

“Because it  _is_  past tense, Dennis,” she said. “You were so important to me, but only because you made yourself so. It wasn’t real for you; I know, because when the time came, it was easy for you to sell me out to someone who looked like my best friend and run like a coward, making things awkward between me and Yuuto forever after. I wasn’t enough for you to reconsider hurting innocent people. You didn’t even change once I was gone–-you went and pretended to join the people who actually wanted to help me. You spied on and lied to  _my brother_ , and gloated about tricking me!”

“But that wasn’t real,” Dennis protested, but weakly. “I mean, yes I lied, but not just about my former allegiance–-I lied to everyone about my feelings for you. I knew no one would believe I’d fallen for you–- _I_ barely believed it–-but it was true. It IS true. You have to believe me.”

“No, I don’t. And even if I did, I  _couldn’t_. Dennis, how can I know which boy is the mask and which is the face? I can’t trust you–-not your word, when I know you’ll lie to me, and not your actions, when I know you’ll wear whatever face suits you.”

He didn’t respond at first, perhaps because his voice sounded as raw as hers. Then he asked, “You can’t trust me and you can’t believe me. Can you at least…?”

His voice broke before the last inevitable words.

Ruri looked away.  _It’ll be easy_ , she’d thought much earlier, when she was just angry at him and the heartbreak hadn’t pushed through yet.  _Like ripping off a Band-Aid. Just rip it off._

This was not easy. And tomorrow, after it was over for real, it still wouldn’t be.

“I can’t love you anymore,” she whispered. “Or–-I do still love you, but I won’t come back to you. And you can’t come back to me. There’s too much between us, too many lies.”

“Ruri…”

“You should go. Go back home and don’t come back here. You… keep your people out of here, and I’ll keep my people safe.”

Dennis breathed, “But I love you.”

Tears stung her eyes again, and she shook her head. Cut the cord.

"We’re too different, and I can’t live my life wondering who you really answer to. Goodbye, Dennis…“

The rain hadn’t let up one bit during their final conversation, but for the first time that night Ruri didn’t curse it. The noise and lightning made it easy to pretend she didn’t hear Dennis calling after her as she walked away; the driving droplets of rain made it easy to pretend she wasn’t crying; and the thunder made a perfectly gloomy soundtrack for her to lose herself in as she walked home alone.


	4. battlefield brethren (reiji/tsukikage)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AU around/right before the time that Roger loses his mind and abducts Yuzu, only to get curbstomped by our favorite scarf nerd.

“Tsukikage,” Reiji murmured over their comms, “I give you leave to finish these people off.”

The Obelisk Force soldiers gaped and guffawed at their prey, seemingly not believing their luck in this four-on-two Battle Royale, but Tsukikage felt no fear or wonder; he just smirked.

“As you say, Reiji- _dono_.”

Twenty seconds later his ace monster had all four men on the ground, writhing, twitching, but down for the count.

He glanced around, checking for any more; finding none, he quickly moved to his superior’s side, leaping from debris to pillar until they stood just out of reach of other foes.

“What direction is our next one?” he asked.

There was a manic yell from the hallway that had both their heads jerking in the direction of the main meeting room the Lancers had once used to appeal to the Council. It sounded like the source of all their recent troubles was attempting to make his escape.

Sure enough, Reiji turned his attention to that shout, swiftly and precisely.

“Roger has made his play,” he said. “Taking Hiiragi Yuzu was a desperate move, but also an inevitable one, because he needed some bargaining chip to crystallize his power. The uprising of the Commons–-”

“-–has given us an opportunity to strike,” Tsukikage finished for him, as he refastened the duel disk on his own arm. “One that we may not have received before. I noticed as well.”

“Let us take that opportunity with haste, then. A game with Roger leaves little room for error.”

They started running, leaping from their perches to dart toward the commotion. Tsukikage had to slow his pace to ensure that Reiji could stay with him, but he was pleased to see that he didn’t have to hold back too much.

Doors blew open before them; a few more Obelisk soldiers staggered in from open windows and secret passages they’d found with explosives, but they were swiftly dealt with and their communications cut and rerouted. The distraction was aggravating, but all they could do was handle the threat and move on.

Just as they arrived in the grand central room, Tsukikage’s attention was captured by too many events at once:

The Council that ran Synchro Dimension was cowering in a corner, their voices overruling each other’s as they shouted protests and recriminations at their foe. Across from them, with light sprinkling down on him as if to illuminate him as an ascended being, Jean-Michel Roger shrieked back at them, his face and hair flushed and wild. It sounded like he was repeating his earlier claims of superiority and plans for domination. He had Hiiragi Yuzu in a vice grip under one arm, and in the other held a button that he seemed to have been frustratingly pressing without any result before Tsukikage and Reiji arrived behind him, out of sight.

There was so much noise that at first the ninja felt overwhelmed, like he had missed something–-but the moment Reiji sucked in a breath next to him, he turned his attention to whatever was disturbing his dueling partner.

It didn’t take long to spot it.

Akaba Reira was standing between Roger and the Council, his duel disk bright and held high on his tiny arm, his eyes wide at all the shouting and posturing, but standing there firmly nonetheless–-brave, unwavering, fiercely protective.

“I won’t let you take her!” he was saying. “You won’t get past me. Duel me!”

Roger laughed–-howled, cackled, mocked. “ _Duel_  you? Little boy, you hold no use for me, and defeating you is not worth my valuable time. I have a dimension to push under my heel–-stand aside!”

“I  _won’t!”_

Reiji glanced between the tyrant-to-be and his brother, looking pale and uncertain for the first time. “Reira…”

Tsukikage gripped his wrist, keeping him from leaping forward for now. “He is all right _–-_ he has not been harmed. We must not act in haste–-our foe is mad, and one wrong move from us could see Hiiragi Yuzu seriously hurt.”

The CEO stared still at his brother’s impassioned challenging back-and-forth with Roger, as though seeing how strong and yet fragile Reira truly was for the first time.

“Hold, Reiji- _dono_. I will never compromise Reira’s safety, not for anyone–-not even if you asked it of me.”

As Reiji gave him a grateful look, Roger heard voices and decided to make his escape. He threw more taunts the way of his longtime rivals for power, with a few throwaway insults against the Lancers and the Chairman in particular, and suddenly detonated a smoke bomb at his feet.

Yuzu’s shriek cut through the smog–-Tsukikage, sensing where he needed to look as he attempted pursuit, found Roger hoisting her up and away as he cleared the nearest detonated exit and headed for his bolthole.

“ _Nii-san!”_

Meanwhile, Reira had been found by Reiji.

The ninja followed his senses to them, grateful that always keeping his mouth covered was finally coming in handy. As the smoke cleared, he found his partner and reached for his hand. Reiji reached back and let Tsukikage take it.

“Are you well?” they both asked Reira in tandem.

The boy shook his head sadly. “I’m fine–-but  _nii-san_ –-Tsukikage–-he took Yuzu, we can’t let him take Yuzu!”

The ninja was inclined to agree–-and when Reiji looked to him as he always did, seeking silent council, he made that apparent.

“Very well,” Reiji said, determined anew. “You’re both correct–-Roger cannot be allowed to leave this dimension with Hiiragi Yuzu. No matter the cost, we must retrieve her, if only to grow the Lancers’ ranks.”

 _And strengthen Sakaki Yuuya’s resolve for the war_ , Tsukikage added to himself. There was only so long Yuzu could be dangled in front of him like a tantalizing carrot before he lost the will to continue pursuing her, much less to complete their greater mission.

He squeezed Reiji’s hand, but the other boy had abruptly paused, staring between the madman’s fleeing path and his small, vulnerable brother.

It was not often that Tsukikage saw his partner freeze or display any kind of indecision–-but this was a clear case of Reiji’s mind following one path and his (admittedly-stiff) heart following another.

Finally he spoke, or at least began. “I will remain here. Tsukikage–-I trust you to pursue Rog–-”

“No,” Tsukikage said bluntly.

Both Akaba brothers stared blankly at him. Reira’s mouth was open and gaping. Which,  _of course it is, I’ve never before said no to his brother. I’ve never denied or averted any order he’s given me for the cause. I didn’t even think I_ could.

Yet on this he wouldn’t be budged.

“I’m sorry…” Reiji returned slowly, letting their hand-hold break, “have I missed something? I don’t understand why–-”

“Reiji- _dono_ , did I not recently say that I would not endanger or otherwise compromise your brother even if you asked me to do so?”

Lights started to come on in their leader’s head. “You did. However, I don’t see how–-”

“You are thinking with your heart,” Tsukikage admonished. It was an understandable problem, but it was also one he had been recruited to corral and correct–-no matter how much his own feelings got in the way.

“You trust me to track down and defeat Roger and secure Hiiragi-san’s safety–-and your trust warms me, I assure you. In the meantime you think to stay with Reira and secure  _his_  safety–-which I am sure warms him. But it is the wrong move.”

Reiji tensed. His teeth gritted. “…How so?”

“Your emotions are causing you to gamble, which normally you would not…. Reiji- _dono_ , your best decisions come when you are focused and stoic. Though I am flattered that you have enough faith to send me against Jean-Michel Roger, I know this decision is not among your best. Roger would defeat me at my current level, and escape with Yuzu.”

It hurt to say, to even think–-but Tsukikage was a master strategist, just like Reiji. They both surveyed, manipulated and outwitted their opponents. He saw no possible future where he could defeat such a brutal, unpredictable Academian agent, much less halt his desperate advance.

But he  _did_ see himself continuing to keep Reira safe, and guiding him to the other Lancers to await Reiji’s victory. Better that than failing his superior at the most critical moment.

“ _You_  must defeat Roger and rescue Yuzu, because you are the only one who can.  _I_ will stay and put my life before Reira’s in your stead.”

“But–-” Reiji looked from Reira to the Council, to the renewed sounds of yelling and screaming all around them with no small amount of concern.

 _I must make him understand. Bring him to his senses_.

Desperation made Tsukikage take Reiji’s closest hand and kneel, bowing over it. He felt Reiji startle and try to pull him up, but he didn’t budge, because even if he had to beg it was imperative that he be heeded.

“Your dueling is unparalleled, and it is needed now more than ever. I need you to trust that I will not let any harm come to Reira, and trust that he will not let any harm come to himself.”

“He’s right,” Reira whispered; his quiet voice grabbed their attention nonetheless. “I’ll be fine. I tried to protect Serena, but I couldn’t…  _nii-san_ , please protect Yuzu.”

Reiji relaxed for a brief moment at the words, looking back down at Tsukikage with an intense look, as though he wanted to memorize his face while he could. That reminded the ninja that that sentiment could very well be true–-he might not see Reiji for a long time once they parted ways here.

If ever.

The moment ended when Reiji squeezed his hand and let it go again without taking his eyes off him.

“There is no one I trust above you, Fuuma Tsukikage,” he said. “When you give your word, you keep it. Very well. Remain here and pr–-work with my brother to locate and reconnect the other Lancers.  _I_  will halt Jean-Michel Roger’s advance.”

Sensing his resolve and the return of his logic, Tsukikage nodded, unbending, and stood up straight. He did not offer any further form of goodbye, except to keep his gaze on Reiji as the other boy shuffled his deck and headed toward the sounds of strife growing softer all the while. It was strange not to be following him, dueling beside him, smiling at him and being smiled at in return. Reiji was not even in any danger yet and he missed him already.

And yet.

 _Our time together is not done,_  he thought.  _This is the right choice. Roger will be defeated, we will finally gain Synchro’s people as allies in the war, and then Reiji and I will take the fight to Fusion._

 _Together_.


	5. builder and the brain (rin/reiji)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I just really, really like Rin making D-Wheels.

The closer one got to the makeshift Lancer command center, the louder the sounds of hissing, banging and scanning became. Any noise that indicated hard work was intoxicating to Akaba Reiji’s ears, but in this case it was especially so because of the mind behind all the commotion.

He walked in greeting her warmly: “Ah, Rin. How are your projects coming?”

A leafy-green head popped up from under the engine prototype she was working on, and lifted it up to eye level as she stood. Spots of oil dotted her pink-and-blue sleeves, along with a bit of her bangs–-she must have been working with a real machine at some point. But despite the messy appearance, Rin looked as cheerful as he had ever seen her.

“Hey, Reiji. Don’t mind this old thing, it’s just a side project…” She nudged the engine with a mixture of exasperation and affection. “The work you wanted me to do with reverse-engineering those Academia carding machines is going well. I think it might be possible to reverse their effects because I’m starting to get a feel for what’s actually happening with them, how they work.”

 _How they work?_  He stepped further in at her invitation, sitting at one of the spotless counters. “Please tell me what you mean by this.”

“Sure.” But she bade him hold on a minute first, while she strode over to the touch screens that were lying dormant opposite the door. That changed once she put in her username and password–-then, a schematic of those formidable duel disks came up, glowing red and spinning as she talked.

“This might get a little gross… but it’s definitely worth knowing. So you know about atoms and how they’re our infinitesimal building blocks, yeah? And you and your LDS R&D department definitely know your way around the ins and outs of matter transmission–-that’s how you left your home dimension in the first place. Well, with this carding business, Academia just combined the two concepts.”

He frowned, though his mind was already attempting to fit together the pieces she’d laid out. “Elaborate.”

“It’s based off of what you overheard in the Professor’s base,” Rin said. As she laid it all out, she unfurled her blueprint of notes, connections and battle strategies. “His ramblings about the new dimension, Arc-V… that’s the connecting piece. There’s no matter transmitter in existence that can move every living person in every dimension to a new one simultaneously, not without… losing some people in the transfer. And by  _some_  I mean  _several hundred million people_.

"You’re smarter than your father, Reiji, so with time you  _might_  have been able to build a form of transmission that safely merged that many worlds and moved that many people. But Academia’s only chance to subdue everyone else indefinitely for the transfer is to make sure everyone is compact enough to transfer. Are you following me yet?”

Her gold eyes pierced him, distracted him even–-but Reiji moved past them to solve the mystery that suddenly didn’t seem so mysterious. He thought of his lessons about physics, anatomy, and the molecular structure of the human body–-and he blanched.

_The cards are… no. He wouldn’t go that far._

_Father… surely you wouldn’t._

“The only way to make people compact is to reduce them down to their simplest forms–-DNA and atoms. Mostly atoms. That’s what is happening–-when Academia defeats one of us, or someone of another dimension, they use the tech on their arms to diminish the losers down to their atoms and seal their genetic information into those special cards. Then they hold on to our comrades until they can download ‘em into Arc-V.”

Reiji turned away, walking to a corner away from the holograms and the engines and his backup mind. The air in the room had grown thicker and warmer; he pinched his nose and closed his eyes, unable to not imagine to looks on the faces of his comrades who had already been carded in the fight. Hokuto, Chojiro, Sawatari, Tsukikage…

 _All gone. All of them were–-were_ condensed _, for reasons I still don’t understand._

“…ji? Reiji? Hey, talk to me. I wouldn’t have told you my theory if I thought it would upset you–-”

“I’m not upset,” he managed to say. “I’m… disappointed, disgusted, dispirited…”

“And upset.” Rin closed the distance between them; he knew this because he felt her pat his shoulder soothingly. “Which is okay. It was easier to believe that they were trapped in another dimension, yeah? But since Arc-V doesn’t exist, I knew there had to be another reason why the Professor is still capturing people, even when they don’t duel.”

“And I believe that you are correct,” Reiji told her, noting how troubled she looked once he’d finally opened his eyes. “Do not fear my doubt, Rin–-you have more than earned my trust.”

He reached out a finger and gently took her bangs in one hand, using the handkerchief he pulled from his pocket with his other hand to try and wipe away the oil in her hair. He generally did his best not to touch her, even with her consent, since her previous life before her rescue wasn’t filled with too much positive physical contact. But her blush this time, and the way her hand trailed down his arm and lingered in return, told him that he might be doing okay this time.

“What other progress have you made?” he asked her to break the moment.

It was like flipping a switch; vitality and cheer came back into Rin’s demeanor and she moved back toward her prototype engine–-and then passed it by, flopping down on one bike-shaped tarp of many in the far left corner.

“I’ve finished four of the six rides you’ll need to get out of here and head to Fusion.  _Your_  D-Wheel still needs a few tweaks, but they’re mostly for handling and acceleration.”

“Excellent. May I…?”

“Oh, of course.” She got back up and pulled off each of the tarps, allowing Reiji to witness her progress since his last visit: four sleek motorcycles, with differing colors and shapes and spoilers.

It was easy for him to pick out his and Reira’s D-Wheel–Rin was sitting on it. He nodded approvingly at the silver shades, the lightness, the sidecar equipped with its own dueling equipment in case Reira didn’t want to ride alone. The others looked just as painstakingly cared for. Pride for the work she’d put in surged in him, and didn’t even diminish when he noticed some new blueprints to improve Yuugo’s D-Wheel on the wall, a sight that would have had him burning with envy before.

“Thank you, Rin,” he said, as kindly as he ever said anything.

“No problem, president.” Her voice was breezy, confident in her own prowess. As she brushed off his praise she found a wrench and worked on tightening one of the screws of a nearby D-Wheel.

Reiji gave the command center’s vehicles another look, then lifted one gray eyebrow. Something was missing. Either Rin hadn’t gotten around to making it yet or she hadn’t even thought of it.

“You mentioned six D-Wheels. Why not seven?”

Rin swung her wrench around, counting with each rotation. “You and your brother, Serena, Shun, Yuuya, and Gongenzaka. I’m not missing anyone.”

“You are,” Reiji insisted. “Yourself.”

“ _Me?”_ Rin shook her head, laughing ruefully. “No, nah, not my role. My place is here, making sure all of your tech works right, and seeing what your big brain doesn’t.”

“Do you perhaps think that technology isn’t portable? That you wouldn’t be just as valuable to us by being  _with_  us, as opposed to behind us?”

“I….”

“Rin.” He put both his hands on her shoulders. “You are just as brilliant as I am, and much more necessary to the war. I need your keen eye for detail and your skills in building  _and_  dueling. So I’m afraid I must refute you–-your place is with the other Lancers, and with me.”

She looked between him and the engine prototype rotating in the middle of their command center, the side project that was so clearly meant for her own future D-Wheel. She was not one to sit back and let others do things for her, and she never had been-–he knew that even when he barely knew all he wanted to know about her.

Still, it took her such a long time to say anything that at first Reiji thought he would have to start persuading her again–-but eventually she reached under the closest desk to slap down a completely different blueprint on the table.

 _New D-Wheel drawings_.

“Well,” Rin said with a cocky grin, “if you want me to come along and back you up that badly, who am I to refuse?”


End file.
